Odessa, sometimes also called the “pearl of the Black Sea” and “Southern Palmyra” is a major tourism center, seaport and transport hub located on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. Once, Odessa was a Greek, Tatar, Russian city. Now, with its a bit more than 1 million inhabitants, Odessa is the third biggest city in Ukraine. Odessa’s rich history explains why its historical architecture has a style more Mediterranean than Russian, having been heavily influenced by French and Italian styles. 

I would recommend you to start your sightseeing tour in Odessa with the City Garden located in the beginning of the Deriybasovskaya Street which is the oldest park in the city featuring a pavilion, music fountain, and some cafes.

Follow to the Deriybasovskaya Street, the main street of Odessa, that everyone should see. A half of Deribasovskaya is a pedestrian zone. This street is a perfect place for having your morning coffee or fine dining or just taking a walk and getting a feel for the city’s vibes. Locals like to promenade up and down the street in the evening, dressed in their best clothes and often walking a toy dog on a leash. Along the street, you will also find a statue of one of the “12 chairs” (those who was raised in the Post-Soviet countries will instantly remember the famous satirical novel of Ilf and Petrov “The Twelve Chairs”).

The Potemkin Stairs is the most well known image of Odessa and the symbol of the city. It was opened in 1841 and consists of 192 steps symbolically representing an entrance to the city from the sea. They were designed to give an optical illusion – when you look from the top you can’t really see the stairs itself but when you look from the bottom you only see stairs. If you’re too lazy to climb the stairs to the top, you can take a funicular on the left side of the stairs to ascend the slope. 

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With a wide network of tunnels underneath it, Odessa was historically a haven for smugglers. You can learn more about illegal trade once thriving in Odessa in the Museum of smuggling (Muzey Kontrabandy, Katerynyns’ka St, 6, Odesa, Odessa Oblast, Ukraine, 65000). The museum exhibits around 150 items of confiscated goods (for example, shoes or porcelain sets with drugs inside and a car door fully stuffed with cigarette packs and illustrations of the ways of their illegal importation). The entrance fee is 90 griwna pp and includes a guided tour in Russian.

If you visit Odessa in summer or in the beginning of September, you can still enjoy a dip into the mildly cold water of the Black Sea. The city has a row of beaches: Langeron, Otrada and Arkadia Beach. Arkadia Beach is Odessa’s version of Ibiza featuring several big clubs, an aquapark and various shops, bars and restaurants. Unfortunately, by the middle of September the season was already almost over and not so much was going in this party zone.